During recent years, pickup trucks have gained popularity as a form of family transportation as they are able to transport both passengers and cargo. If the truck is being used to carry cargo, truck bed liners are often installed to protect the metal surfaces of the truck bed from scratches and dents which may lead to rust and which affect the aesthetic appearance of the bed. Some liners, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,162,098, protect only the floor of the truck bed; some, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,863, protect only the side walls of the bed; and most protect the floor, the end wall, both side walls, and the tailgate. Various materials such as wood (U.S. Pat. No. 4,505,508), vinyl (U.S. Pat. No. 4,279,439), and plastic (U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,507), are used in the manufacture of truck bed liners, and some, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,505,508, 4,893,862, 4,944,612 and 4,986,590, are multi-piece liners, while most have a unibody construction. The most common truck bed liner is made of a plastic material formed for a custom fit of various makes and models of pickup trucks. For example, the liner disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,507 includes protection of the tailgate in its unitary construction, while the liners disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,814,473, 4,047,749 and 4,111,481 and 4,958,876 use a separate liner to protect the tailgate.
The bed of the truck may also be used for the attachment of a camper top or cap in addition to carrying cargo in the open truck bed. To accommodate both uses, some liners, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,681,360, 4,768,822 and 4,824,158, are used together with a camper top, and the truck bed liner disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,731 is used as a bed liner or inverted and also used as a camper top.
The wide variety of truck bed liners available for a multitude of truck makes and models are able to sufficiently protect the truck bed from scratches and dents that could be created by carrying cargo in the bed, and many may be used with a camper top or cap to provide the owner with versatility in the use of the truck. However, the size of the cargo may pose difficulties in carrying some items. One such problem is encountered when handling items which are large enough that they do not rest on the floor of the truck bed. For example, a 4'.times.8' sheet of plywood often will not lie flat on the floor of a compact pickup truck's cargo bed. Although the internal width of the compact truck bed is greater than 4', the width of the bed between the truck's wheel wells is less than 4'. To solve this problem, U.S. Pat. No. 4,767,149 discloses a liner with support elements that permit the placement of a shelf at a level at or just above the height of the wheel well. If such a liner is used with a compact pickup truck, a 4'.times.8' sheet of plywood could rest flatly on the shelf.
Another problem is encountered when carrying smaller items or items of odd shapes in the cargo bed. Although the materials and construction of liners absorb the shock of moving cargo, truck bed liners have been developed which provide mechanisms which inhibit the movement of cargo within the bed. These cargo restraint systems compartmentalize the bed in order to limit or restrict movement of smaller or oddly shaped cargo by providing a support means for the placement of a restraining member parallel to the front end of the bed and the tailgate. Some of these systems, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,717,298, 4,887,947 and 4,955,771, are separate from the bed liner and hence are generally more expensive. Other systems, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,887,947, 4,958,876 and 4,991,899 are integral with the bed liner. Generally, recesses or slots of appropriate sizes are formed into the side walls of the bed liner to hold a restraint, such as a 2".times.4", which further compartmentalizes the bed of the truck and/or provides a member to which cargo can be secured, both of which may prevent the movement of cargo within the bed of the truck. Support members molded into the form of the truck bed are often preferred as they are ready at any time to be used without requiring any additional assembly.
One disadvantage of these side wall systems is the loss of area on floor of the truck bed. To create an appropriately sized recess, the side walls of the liner must be deep enough to accommodate and hold the restraining member. This reduces the interior width of the bed liner by several inches with respect to the side wall of the vehicle. Support members are usually not formed in the floor of the bed liner to avoid reducing the effective area of the bed and to avoid disturbing the overall flatness of the truck bed liner floor. However, there are portions of the floor of the bed liner which are generally not utilized, such as the area near the wheel well which is often irregular in shape. It would be desireable to utilize this space for cargo restraints.